IMAGES OF THE AMERICAN WEST

Tucumcari, NM Vintage Photographs

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Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico

Vintage postcard of the Blue Swallow Motel.

The famous Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico,

December, 2004, Kathy Weiser.

This image available for photographic prints  and downloads HERE!

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and one of the longest continuously operated motels along New Mexico's slice of Route 66 is the Blue Swallow Motel. Built in 1939 by W. A. Huggins, the motel was an immediate success as hundreds of travelers heading west stopped for the night.

Unfortunately, with gas and tire rationing during World War II, the motels’ visitors began to decline. The best known of the owners over the years was a woman named Lillian Redman, who operated the hotel for almost 40 years beginning in 1958.  Though she faced numerous  "ups and downs,” she continued to keep the motel open even after Route 66 was bypassed by I-40, continuing to operate the motel into her nineties.  

Today, this classic Route 66 era motel, standing frozen-in-time continues to provide today’s travelers with a place for rest. Featuring a shell design on its exterior stucco and its lit-up neon sign, the tradition of 1950s hospitality is kept alive in its updated, though continually "retro-flavored" rooms.

© Kathy Weiser/Legends of America, updated October, 2008.

Read About Tucumcari

From the Rocky Mountain General Store

66 Package Deal - This Route 66 Package Deal includes both the EZ66 Guide For Travelers and the The Route 66 Map Series. The EZ 66 Guide includes up-to-date maps, attractions, tips and games.  The map series includes a packaged set of eight fold-out roadmaps, one for each Route 66 state, providing clear, detailed driving directions. This set will provide you with the basic tools for providing an easier journey on what can sometimes be a confusing piece of pavement.